How to Make Cats Trust You

Have you ever wished your new cat would be friendly and trust you? Instinctively, cats are very independent and do not live on friendship. So it will take a longer time for them to trust and respond to lures like junk food. Let your cat develop relationships on her own, and you should focus on making her feel confident and secure. Once she feels healed by her surroundings, she will begin to learn to trust you.

Table of Contents

Create a safe environment

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Understand the cat mindset. You won’t be able to force your cat to do anything, let alone trust you. Instead, cats need to be convinced that they will benefit from the action. For example, they will stop napping if they see a snack. Don’t feel sad if you can’t lure them. In essence, cats live quite aloof and unpredictable. ^{[1] X Research Source Why Does My Cat..? Sarah Heath. Publisher: Souvenir Press}

Cats will find it difficult to get used to if you are noisy and disorderly. Cats don’t like stress, noise, or a lot of activity going on. Cats will quickly get used to it if you are calm and relaxed around them.

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Allocate room and shelter for cats. A good way to make cats comfortable is to give them space. It should be a comfortable, warm place to sleep, eat, play, and go to the bathroom. Another option is to go to a pet store and ask about cat wall shelves. These are wall mounts in any position that works for you and your cat, so they can climb on them, watch from above, and feel safe.

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Give your cat a safe and explorable space. There will be times when your cat feels insecure, scared, or anxious. Give them plenty of places to hide when they’re scared, like in a closet or under the bed. You can know where they’re hiding, but don’t force them out unless you have to. Make sure your cat has access to high places (such as window ledges, furniture, or tall scratching posts) and toys when they are bored and want to wander around or play.

It is important that you have a safe, calm space as soon as your cat comes home. If trying to gain the trust of a new cat, keep them in a room where they can get used to the territory without being overwhelmed. ^{[2] X Research Source Why Does My Cat..? Sarah Heath. Publisher: Souvenir Press}
You should also place the cat litter box in a corner of the room (it should be a place away from any noise, like a dryer), and the cat should feel protected when using them (the two walls forming the corner will be make cats feel protected).

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Provide food and water. Feed your cat regularly so that they understand that you are the one giving them food and a home. When you put the food down, talk to the cat softly as if it’s singing so that it recognizes your voice and associates it with positive impressions, like when it’s time to eat. When the cat comes to eat, step back and give the cat plenty of space. If you want to be with your cat, just sit on the floor so you don’t get too tall, which is intimidating for a cat.

Make sure your cat has easy access to water and food. If the cat is shy, place the food and water dish close to the hiding place, so that the cat is not stressed and traumatized when having to go out to eat.

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Help the cat relax. It can be difficult for your cat to relax and calm down in a new environment. You need to buy a synthetic cat pheromone product (like Feliway) to spray the room. This is a synthetic scent of a chemical mother cats normally secrete to soothe kittens, making them feel safe. Pheromones can reduce stress for cats and help them settle down faster. ^{[3] X Feline Behavior Research Source : A guide for Veterinarians. Bonnie Beaver. Publisher: Saunders}

You can also help your cat get used to your smell. This helps the cat recognize you when you’re in physical contact. For example, you can put your cat to bed with some old t-shirts that smell like you. ^{[4] X Feline Behavior Research Source : A guide for Veterinarians. Bonnie Beaver. Publisher: Saunders}

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Create a positive atmosphere. A cat can still be afraid of the surrounding space no matter how cozy it is. This often happens with a cat that has been abused or abandoned. Never scold when you see a cat doing something wrong. It’s possible that the cat is just discovering a new home. Instead, you should only use a soft, calm voice to praise your cat for good behavior.

If the cat seems to panic around, make sure you don’t scare it yourself. Never snoop or act on a whim your cat doesn’t expect. Cats who have been abused tend to jump when taken by surprise.

Encourage cats to interact

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Watch for signs your cat is ready to interact. Always let the cat take the initiative to approach you, instead of you actively approaching the cat. If your cat is clearly showing signs of stress and is watching you on purpose (standing still, tail erect, pupils dilated), then do nothing. Sit still, it’s better to close your eyes. You won’t look dangerous then and the cat will get used to your presence. On the other hand, if cats are ready to interact with you, they will: ^{[5] X Why Does My Cat..? Sarah Heath. Publisher: Souvenir Press}

Appears in your sight, instead of running to hide
Take a few steps closer to you
Sitting near you licking (shows relaxation)
Sit with your back to you (shows trust)

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Show harmlessness. There are many ways to show you’re not a danger and put your cat at ease. Please lie down if there is enough space. This helps you to be as tall as a cat, not to have the upper hand. Avoid eye contact, as that is a sign of defiance and threat in cat language. ^{[6] X Research Sources} Instead, turn your head and look away.

If you wear glasses, you should take them off because the lenses look like big eyes to a cat. This looks like a threat.

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Let the cat take charge of the interaction. Don’t feel like you have to speed things up. Eventually, your cat will trust you and start approaching you. The cat will then voluntarily rub its head against your hand or body. This rubbing action will leave a cat smell on you, indicating that the cat has accepted you.

You can encourage your cat to come close to you by using delicious treats to lure. Place your hands on the floor and scatter some food particles around. Let the cat muster up the courage to crawl to eat the seeds on its own. Over time, you can stack the seeds closer to you and the cat can come and eat them without being threatened.

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Create a positive environment for cats and other pets. Let them play and eat together. Of course, this is a process that you will have to start by arranging for them to live at a distance, and then gradually get closer each day. It would be helpful to have more people to help you with this process.

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Scratch your cat’s ears and chin. If the cat is signaling (by rubbing its head against you) that it is ready for contact, scratch its ears or chin. Take it slow and start with one finger. Don’t act on a whim, and once your cat trusts you more, you can scratch her chin. ^{[7] X Research Source Why Does My Cat..? Sarah Heath. Publisher: Souvenir Press}

Avoid violent play, as cats don’t like that.

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Spend time playing with cats. Once your cat starts to approach you frequently and purr when petted, you may no longer need to lie on the floor. Sit up and pet the cat. The cat may sit on your lap, showing that it trusts you completely.

Schedule playtime with your cat in your daily schedule. This will help bond your cat and you, and the cat will expect your attention. Research has shown health benefits for humans (such as lower cholesterol levels, lower blood pressure, reduced anxiety) when petting and talking to pets. ^{[8] X Research Sources}

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Recognize the signs when your cat needs space. This is especially important when the cat has a history of abuse and neglect. You will need to be careful when petting your cat, as the cat can suddenly bite you. This, along with unexpected scratches, indicates that the cat is overwhelmed with physical contact or cuddling. Give your cat alone time to calm down, because she’s also in for a surprise. Next time, avoid petting the cat for too long. ^{[9] X Research Source}

Never punish a cat by scolding or hitting. Cats won’t understand why you hurt them. Instead, stay away from the scene for a while.

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Make sure your cat gets enough exercise and play. If the cat tries to scratch or bite you, it’s because the cat is having excess energy. Let your cat play at least once a day. The best time is before bedtime. This helps the cat expend energy and associate this time with feeling tired and going to bed at the same time as you.

Advice

If the cat does something wrong, ignore the behavior and walk away. Punishing the cat only causes the cat to associate the violent behavior with your presence, making it anxious when you are around. To keep your cat from repeating the wrong behavior, try to find out why it does it and come up with solutions to change the behavior.
Learn how to hold your cat properly, so that the cat feels more comfortable when held. You should wait until the cat is completely comfortable before picking it up, so that previous trust-building efforts don’t go to waste.
Once the cat is comfortable enough and allows you to stroke it, never bring your hand down. Let’s start at cat’s eye level. Keep your hands low, rub their chin with your hand, and let your cat lower her head if she wants to. Never put your hand on top of a cat’s head because it will contact objects from above like birds and will scratch your hand. Keep your hand in the area around their head until the cat is completely relaxed. If you stroke down the length of the body and the cat becomes so upset that, for example, it may wheeze at you, this may not be just plain discomfort. It could be a problem in the body affecting that area of the body, making them painful when you touch them.
If your cat snuggles up to you on nights with festivals and fireworks, this is the time to calm your cat. There is a possibility that explosions and flashes of lightning in the sky frighten cats. So every time you hear fireworks, make sure to be there to comfort your cat. Another thing is to not let the cat go out, especially if it does not trust you completely and will never return.

Steps

Create a safe environment

Encourage cats to interact

Advice

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